DIY Spice Rack No Counter Space Required

Easy DIY Spice Rack

Spice storage was troublesome in our house. My mother and her friendshad maybe 8 spices in a little rack . We still use the same basic 8 spices but our generation added a couple dozen others. This DIY spice rack has room for all of them, this spice rack holds 40 jars with room for other condiments if needed.

Placement and Sizing

My kitchen has a teeny tiny pantry, its organized but so full all the time. There were only two unused spaces left, the walls between the shelf and the pantry door. Hubs built the diy spice rack to fit into the widest space.

The best part of this spice rack is its height, mine is 6 feet tall. It’s tall, white and oh so handsome. Given the constraints of the small pantry it was impossible to take a picture that shows the entire rack. The spice rack has two more shelves than shown.

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Take Spice Rack Measurements

Measure the width of the open wall space between the shelves and the door. Mine is 12 inches. .

For easy access to the spices you will need the spice shelves to be a minimum of 6 1/2 inches between the bottom of the upper shelf and the top of the lower shelf. This rack has 7 small shelves and 2 long ones. If you have room for a larger shelf make sure you lengthen it by at least 6 1/2 inches.

I added two taller shelves on the bottom to house small assorted containers, like capers, horseradish, hot sauce. If you have more spices than I do feel free to continue with the small shelves the whole length of the spice rack.

Build the DIY Spice Rack

To make a DIY spice rack the same dimension as this one you will need:

Build the Outside Casing

All your cuts are simple square cuts. Cut two 1 by 3’s to six feet. If there is enough board left over, cut two 11 inch pieces. If not use a new board.

Make sure all the boards are square and edges meet exactly. Screw the short boards to the ends of the two long boards. (Careful not to attach on the inside of the long pieces or your shelves will be too short.)

Build the Shelves

Starting at the top. Measure 6 1/2 inches with a pencil, down each of long casings. Double check to be sure they are even on both long pieces. ( this ensures level shelves). Once you have confirmed that you like the spacing, screw the shelves into the place through the casing.

Next take a 1 by 2″ inch board and cut into 8 – 10 inch pieces. The shelf supports not only strengthen the shelves, you will use them to attach your shelves to the wall.

Place the shelf supports under each shelf and screw into place.

Cut the moulding into 9 – 11 inch pieces. Place one of your spice jars on the shelf and place the moulding where it will hold the jar in place while allowing the jar to be moved easily. Ours is 1 inch above the shelf.

Nail the moulding into place with small nails or an air nailer.

If you like you can fill all the screw and nail holes. Frankly this is a practical piece so I didn’t bother. It was given two coats of white paint.

Attach the DIY Spice Rack to the wall with screws into the studs. Due to the weight placing the screws in a wall stud is important. If the screws are not centered to the spice rack, its in a closet and doesn’t truly matter.

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Jars and Labels

a The jars are from the Dollar Store, I purchased them for 3/$1.00. May I suggest buying a few extra bottles and having them on hand in case you ever get a new spice. After all this work you want it the jars to match. The labels were made in Word using a free Microsoft clipart of a mixer and Avery 22804 labels.

Organized Pantry

The pantry is not pretty I admit that, but it is extremely functional. At least it is now that I have the extra spice storage. Its tiny but this little easy project makes a huge difference. It freed up a whole shelf. As you can see it takes up no space in the pantry and everything is just as easy to get to.

The pictures have a bit of glare because my pantry has a lovely light in it. After the spice rack the light is my favorite part.a

Let me know what you think, and please pin the project if you think your friends may find it helpful.

Leanna, this is such a great idea! We did a similar one on the back of our pantry door in our old apartment. I wish we had a space for it in our new house because I need a more organized spice storage situation that isn’t toddler accessible!

I’m in awe of your carpentry skills. You were able to fit a ton of spices into a small space, and it looks great, too! Thank you for linking up at #BloggingGrandmothersLinkParty. I’m sharing your post on social media.

Aren’t honey do lists the best? Maybe you could put one on the back your pantry door. We aren’t able to add storage on the back of our door as it is semi transparent glass. Thank you for commenting, much appreciated.

What a great idea! We have loads of spices in our cabinets and putting them in one place where I can see them is something I need. Hubby is tall and sometimes I have to ask him to get me a jar I need. At least with your spice organizer, I could see where it’s at.

Absolutely Marisa. Mine is tall and narrow, to fit in the space allowed. Spices really do take up so much room and you waste time sorting through trying to find the one you want. I know this rack solved my spice storage problem, I hope it solves yours.

Hi Maria: I work at being organized but it gets to the point where I need to purge. If I have things label and a spot or everything I am able to find what I need instead of digging through the mountains.

The spice rack works really well, if you make one I be you will love it.

Hi Lynn: My Mom would say, so much stuff and no food. I love having what I need available when I want it. Such a pain to stop mid recipe to go grab a spice you want at the store. Also when you need a new spice for a recipe of course yu have leftovers. Thank you for commenting.

My pantry is in my dining room (strange!) and has a big door. This is a perfect solution to my huge spice stash. I always buy loose bulk spices and just leave in the baggies due to lack of space. This totally solves my problem. Thanks for sharing!

Right on Joy. Thanks for the thumbs up, you really just take a normal sized spice rack design and make it taller. It amazes me how my kitchen is full of stuff. Guess I need to stay out of Home Sense…NOT.

Hi Debra: He gets nervous with me near the power tools I am willing to try little jobs like this one, but he figures he can put it together faster than I can. But guess who gets to do all the sanding and painting lol.

Very cool! Spice storage is always a problem for us, too. We can’t put anything like this in where we currently live (it’s a rental), but after we move next spring it could work for us! Thanks for sharing. =)

Welcome. Happy your here!

My name is Leanna. I live too far north in Edmonton, Canada. Although I never dreamed decades of single parenting would develop into blogging. I love creating DIY tutorials and crafts to encourage others that you don't have to be rich to have a really pretty home. Read more of my story

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